


It's Nice To Have A Friend

by bumblesbees



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: But Know I Have Romantic Intentions For Them, Developing Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I'm Bad At Tagging, Link (Legend of Zelda) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Link (Legend of Zelda) Needs a Hug, Post-Breath of the Wild, Post-Calamity Ganon, Pre-Relationship, Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Zelda (Legend of Zelda) Needs A Hug, but it's all subtly, could be read as platonic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-23 11:48:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30055008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bumblesbees/pseuds/bumblesbees
Summary: She reads the sign: Link's Home.Zelda smiles down at Link. “So this is what Hyrule’s Hero calls home.”
Relationships: Link/Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 32





	It's Nice To Have A Friend

The ride from the castle to Hateno isn’t too long, as least Zelda doesn’t think so, but she did doze off partway there so she can’t really tell. 

She does remember the stop at the Dueling Peaks Stable so Link could trade with some merchant. the sadness and chill of seeing all the decayed Guardians filling her bones. How Link’s body stiffened and Epona’s pace picked up. Zelda wanted to ask if it was because that was where he almost died all those years ago, if it was the lingering fear a Guardian was going to awaken and true and kill them, or both. She still wants to, but doesn’t. Maybe one day. 

When they reach the entrance to the village, Link brings Epona to a stop and dismounts her. Zelda moves to join him, but he just shakes his head and smiles, leading Epona up the hill, past some houses, and across a bridge to a lone house. She reads the sign: _Link's Home_.

Zelda smiles down at Link. “So this is what Hyrule’s Hero calls home.”

He blushes a little, scratching the back of his neck. “Yeah. it was a spur-of-the-moment type thing. Bolson was tearing it down, so I bought it and had him fix it up.” He offers his hands to Zelda, which she gratefully takes. They’re calloused and warm and comforting as they help her off of Epona. 

“So do I get a grand tour or..” She smirks, voice light and airy. 

Link rolls his eyes. “I guess if the Princess insists.” He lets go of her hands and grabs back onto the reigns of Epona, walking her over to the stable beside his house, where there are two other horses. One of them is pure white and decorated with gold and purple gear. The other is a large purplish-gray horse with an orange mane. “The big one here is Talon. A traveller I meant had heard about a large horse in the Taobab Grasslands. First thing we did together was run away from some Lynels.” Link smirks, mostly to himself, reaching up to scratch Talon on his chin, causing the horse to neigh happily. 

“You, run away from Lynels?” Zelda teases. 

Link’s face makes a weird expression before looking away from Zelda. He opens his mouth to say something, only to close it again. 

Zelda can tell from his voice that he doesn’t really want to talk about it. “I am sorry.”

He quickly looks up at her, shaking his head. “Not your fault, please don’t feel bad about it.” He smiles at her. “I had Bolson redo the horse stables. There were two built-in, but neither big enough for Talon, so he redid them with one big enough for him.”

“How much money do you have there, Link?” She laughs. “Buy a house, stay in inns and horse stables, purchase an obscene amount of clothing and arrows.”

Link rolls his eyes, smirking lightly. “You learn to smash every mineral stone you find, never know what you could get out of it. Amber, Ore, Topaz, Sapphire, Ruby, even a Diamond. I have a guy in the Zora Domain who gives me a Diamond for every ten Luminous stones I give him. I also have a ridiculous amount of flint and rock salt, but they come in handy for fires and cooking.”

He then takes a couple of steps away from talon and towards the white horse. “I found this guy on Safula Hill, not far from the Sanidin Park Ruins from the memory the day before Ganon attacked. This guy I talked to at the Outskirt Stable said he was a descendant of your horse.”

Zelda looks at the stallion and takes a shaky breath. “He’s beautiful. Does he... does he have a name?”

“I remembered your horse's name was Storm and I thought that would be a good name.” Link answers. “You, of course, can change it. I just thought-“

Zelda shakes her head, reaching out to let the stallion. He leans into her touch. “It’s perfect.”

Link smile is small as he moves to put Epona away while Zelda pet storm. Once Epona is tied up, Link raises an eyebrow at Zelda. “Well, my Princess, are you ready for the house tour?” He holds out an arm for her to loop hers through. 

So she does, smiling brightly at him. “I have never been more prepared for something in my life, my Knight.”

They walk towards the door, which Link opens and gestures for Zelda to enter. “Welcome to my humble home.”

Zelda steps in, warmth and comfort wash over her. It’s small but cute. even though she knows Link didn’t get a lot of opportunities to be here, it still has so many touches that make it feel like Link’s lived here his whole life. There’s a little kitchen area in the corner, room for Link to prepare meals and clean up from them. There’s a little table in the centre of the room big enough for two comfortably and four max, with a vase of yellow and white flowers in the middle. The walls are decorated with weapons. She walks over to them, reading the plaques. _Twilight Bow, Ancient Bow, Hero’s Shield, Ancient Shield, Savage Lynel Shield_. She wants to ask about the Lynel Shield, press further about his uneasement of them early, but knows now is not the time. There are three large swords and one smaller sword in their sheaths leaning against the corner, Link having run out of room to display them. 

She looks at Link with misty eyes. “The champions weapons.. you have them displayed?”

“I can swap them if you would like.” Link says in a rush. “I get that they may be painful reminders abou-“

“It is beautiful.” Zelda interrupts, hastily whipping at her eyes. “How you have their weapons displayed like this. That you have them. I know it’s what they would have wanted.”

Link nods, before gesturing up the stairs. “The end of the tour awaits.”

She follows Link up the stairs to the space. There’s not a lot. A desk overlooking the main floor, a bookshelf at the foot of the bed, a nightstand beside the bed with a single silent princess in it. Above the head of the bed was another weapon mantle. She leans on one knee on the bed to get a better look. A silver sword with a frost green handle, the blade emanating a soft glow.

“ _The Goddess Sword_.” Zelda says, running her finger over the name plaque.

“It was in a chest that just.. appeared one day. Same with the Hero Shield, Twilight Bow, and those large swords, as well as a lot of the clothes I have.” Link informs, leaning against the railing. “I think they were gifts from the Goddess?”

Zelda scoffs. “The Goddess does not give gifts,”

Link flinches. Zelda feels bad. It’s not fair to talk to him like that, even if it wasn’t against him. He has lost a lot because of the Goddess, too.

She stands up straight and walks back down the stairs, purposely ignoring the image of her, Link, and the Champions before tragedy struck, before it all hurt. If Link noticed (of course he did, he notices everything), he doesn’t say anything, just follows Zelda.

While Zelda sits at the table, Link stops at the bottom. “You can have the bed. I’ll sleep on the floor and ask around town tomorrow about extra beds. I can set it up at the bottom of the stairs or you can claim that space if you’d like.”

Zelda lets out a laugh. “You are not sleeping on the floor, you just fought Ganon. And I cannot fully imagine what all you went through to get there.”

“Well, you’re not sleeping on the floor.” Link says back in a serious tone. “You were just trapped with Ganon for one hundred years, fighting him while I was catching up on my sleep.” The last part is said with a sad scoff, like he is disappointed in himself. “Don’t worry about me, Princess. I will be fine on the floor for a bit. I’ve slept in worse places.”

Zelda smiles sadly, getting up and walking to Link, trying not to hang onto him saying he’d slept in worse places. She takes his one hand in hers, much like he did after they defeated Ganon. “Neither of us are sleeping on the floor. the bed is big enough for the both of us until we figure everything else.”

The bed really isn’t, but Zelda isn’t going to let Link give up his comfort for her in his own home. she can see his shoulders subtly slouched in the exhaustion he has been trying to hide, the scars that peek out from his clothes.

But it isn’t just that. Part of it is the simple fact that after sharing space with Calamity Ganon for one hundred years, she craves nothing more than the comforting presence of someone beside her, someone who makes her feel safe. And no one has ever made her feel safe the way that Link did and does. It may be selfish, but after everything, she thinks they’re allowed to be.

Link looks down at their intertwined hands before nodding slightly, letting how a sigh. “Ok. We share.” He looks up at Zelda, smiling slightly.

She squeezes his hand comfortingly. “Why don’t we eat. I am starving and I want to see if your cooking skills have improved and your eating habits have stayed the same.”

Link’s nose scrunches up. “No, I don’t think we want to know about my eating habits.”

For the first time in one hundred years, Zelda’s laugh is pure happiness, something she hopes isn’t fleeting.

**Author's Note:**

> hi i hope you enjoyed :)
> 
> i got botw for christmas & have been playing as non-stop as school will let me
> 
> i intend on making this a series sooo stay tuned!!
> 
> feedback welcomed but pls be nice i'm delicate


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